HALAL OPERATIONAL INTEGRITY, WHISTLEBLOWING, AND THE ABSENCE OF FORENSIC VERIFICATION IN AN INDUSTRIAL DISMISSAL DISPUTE: A CASE REVIEW OF NORIZAHAM BIN CHIK V PANGKOR DISCOVERY & OUTDOOR QUEST SDN BHD [2010] ILJU 281

Abstract

The traditional means of analyzing halal integrity in Malaysia is by certification, labelling and laboratory verification of food products. This case analysis does not fit within this traditional scope, and it relies on Halal Forensic principles. In reviewing Norizaham Bin Chik v Pangkor Discovery & Outdoor Quest Sdn Bhd, an award of the Industrial Court of Malaysia (Ipoh, Perak), whereby a kitchen worker was dismissed after he had reported to the employer about the supposed use of samsu (alcoholic liquor) by a fellow kitchen worker at a resort that claimed to operate a food and beverage business as a halal business. Using the doctrine of condonation, the Industrial Court declared the dismissal to be unjustified or unreasonable and that the samsu allegation was an afterthought of which the employer had not presented any documentary, physical or expert evidence. This case is placed in the context of the Industrial Relations Act 1967, the Trade Descriptions Act 2011, the Malaysian Standard MS1500:2019 and the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010. These assesses the documentary, physical and expert evidence that is presented or has never been presented in the Court. More so, it explains its implication on the halal management, internal compliance reporting and the health and trust of Muslim consumers and employees in the Malaysian halal industry.